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Parachute Silk

Now that I ve lurked long enough and read enough posts to whet my appetite, I want to sit down and make one of these hammocks Ed has illustrated so well in his

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, Jun 29, 2003

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Now that I've lurked long enough and read enough posts to whet my
appetite, I want to sit down and make one of these hammocks Ed has
illustrated so well in his book. I'm not sure if the seemingly
"squeezed" configuration will appease this normally claustrophobic me
as much as the Hennessy I own does, but it's worth a try.

I'm somewhat curious as to materials, though. In his book, Ed specifies
1.9 oz. ripstop nylon, and yet I have seen quite a number of commercial
camping hammocks ( ie: http://www.paradisehammocks.co.uk/ ) which use
1.1 oz parachute silk. The parachute silk I supposed to be incredibly
strong and tear resistant, and even strong in UV light. I realize that
Ed warns against 1.1 oz. nylon, but would parachute silk be considered
the same? Anyone have experience with this? If it is strong enough,
wouldn't the lighter weight be worth it?

Also, may I ask why polypropylene straps are used instead of spectra
rope slung through webbing, like the Hennessy?

I've been rarin' to get out into the mountains here in Japan with a
hammock, but what with the monsoon deluges lately, my bad experiences
with a cold back and shoulders in the Hennessy (3 trips last year), and
doubts about my sewing abilities (but I'm going to learn!) I haven't
yet gotten up the resources to make hammock camping a reality this
year. The high mountains in Japan are merciless with wind, and I'm
somewhat reluctant to rely on a hammock in the alpine regions, up at
10,000 feet, still. There are few trees up there... I may just stay
with my GoLite Hex 3 tipi for now, unless I can find a more aerodynamic
solution.